Photography is one of those areas that I love and have always tried to improve on. I’ve always had the low end equipment so I’ve only been able to go so far. I’ll admit I get jealous when I see nice lenses or even a high end camera. I like to imaging what I could accomplish with one of those things. Enough dreamland… I do feel I can have decent results with my what I have. Better than the average, but nothing compared to a pro. I have recently, for the first time, bought a soft box with a flash. I always used natural lighting only before this. I have been practicing and wow it’s a whole new area to learn and to improve my shots with. There is no time like now (and that time is when ever you are able, when the opportunity is there). I have not tried any outdoor shots yet, just indoor for now. I didn’t realize how much lighting is so very important. Finally I have some clear shots instead of always being on the verge of blurry photos that need editing to get them ok. My mind is going all over the place thinking of all the improved photos I can now take. So fun. Here are a few shots of fun I had just testing the lights with my kids. Now it’s time to start finding a mood or feel for my photos by experimenting a lot. Wish me luck. If I get on a schedule and try and at least once a week set up and force myself to put in the time, I’ll learn a lot faster. Then I’ll know when I want harsh shadows vs soft shadows vs no shadows, etc. I don’t want to have the model wait patiently as I try and figure things out so once I get it all down it should be a fun smooth process to take portrait shots. I actually like taking shots of just still life, but people are harder and something I would like to learn. I love portraits so that is probably where I’d focus my learning. Group shots are not what I like doing either.

So for the equipment I’m using is a Canon Rebel ts6 and either my 28-135mm lens or my 50mm cannon lenses. The dome lights I’m using are the some cheaper gear “Neewer” from amazon. They do the trick and I love them as I don’t know anything else and anything is much better than what I had which is nothing. They are battery powered so I can bring them outside easily if needed.

As I learn and feel I’m good enough to share, maybe I’ll share my experience of what I learned along the way. I’m just happy that I have some photos that are sharp and not fuzzy from low lighting. That alone makes me really happy. :)